Whisked Away

66. Settling In

We returned indoors to freshen up and soon returned outside to find Jewel. Two chairs sat comfortably in the grass next to where Jewel sat. Tirian intertwined our fingers as we took the seats. The three of us began to converse about what news was in Narnia these days. "I cannot set myself to any work or sport today," Tirian admires excitedly. "I can think of nothing but this wonderful news. Think you we shall hear more of it today?"

"They are the most wonderful tidings ever heard in our days or our fathers' or our grandfathers' days," Jewel agreed.

"If they are true," I add.

Looking slightly surprised at my words, Tirian retorted curiously, "How can they chose but be true? It is more than a week ago..." He continued on explaining who all we'd heard from. I smiled at how his eyes lit up in excitement as he spoke.

"Indeed sire," Jewel was saying, "I believe it all. If I seem not to, it is only that my joy is too great to let my belief settle itself. It is almost too beautiful to believe." At this moment a beautiful phoenix landed on the grass in front of us.

"Azar," I greeted, "It is good to see you."

"You as well, my queen," she replied in her wise-sounding voice that seemed to have a sort of echoed quality. "A centaur approaches."

"It is true," Jewel agreed, "I hear the heavy hooves of it's tread." When the centaur appeared, we all recognized it as Roonwit. Sweat covered his body as he approached. When he was standing in front of us (Azar had moved out of the way) he bowed low to the ground.

In a voice as deep as a bull's, he greeted, "Hail my King, my Queen." Tirian called for some wine to help him catch his breath as we all waited to hear what he had to say. A large wooden bowl was brought, which Roonwit took in his hands. "I drink first to Aslan and Truth, sires, and secondly to your majesties." He then emptied the bowl and handed it back to the page with a small thanks.

"Now Roonwit," Tirian began, "Have you brought us more news of Aslan?"

I recognized the grave expression on his face as one of careful consideration. "Sires," he began after careful consideration, "You know how long I have lived and studied the stars, for we centaurs live longer than you men, and even longer than your kind, Unicorn. Never in all my days have I seen such terrible things written in the planets as there have been nightly since this year began. The stars say nothing of the coming of Aslan, nor of peace, nor of joy. I know by my art that there have not been such disastrous conjunctions of the plants for five hundred years."

"It was already in my mind to come a warn your majesties," he continued, "Some terrible evil hangs over Narnia. But last night the rumor reached me that Aslan in abroad in Narnia. Sires, do not believe this tale. It cannot be. The stars never lie."

"If you say the stars say nothing of his coming," I reply, "then I believe you. I was already doubtful of the truth of this, your words just confirm it. It is all a lie."

"A lie!" Tirian exclaimed fiercely, "What creature in Narnia or all the world would dare lie on such a matter?" I noticed his hand land on his sword hilt.

"That I know not, Lord King," Roonwit replied as I began to rub my thumb over the back of Tirian's hand to calm him. "But I know that there are liars on earth; there are none among the stars."

"I wonder," Jewel mussed, "whether Aslan might not come though all the stars foretold otherwise. He is not a slave to the stars but their Maker. Is it not said in all the old stories the He is not a tame lion?"

"Noble Unicorn," Azar's oracle-like voice interrupted, "Who are we to say that Aslan does not tell the stars of his coming and that is how they know? Perhaps..." Before the noble bird could say more a desperate wailing broke out across the forest. Although the source remained out of site, the words soon were distinguishable.

"Woe, woe, woe!" the voice called, "Woe for my brothers and sisters! Woe for the holy trees! The woods are laid waste. The axe is loosed against us! We are being felled. Great trees are falling, falling, falling!" At last the form of a dryad came into view. "Justice Lord King, my Queen! Come to our aid. Protect your people. They are felling us in Lantern Waste. Forty great trunks of my brothers and sisters are already on the ground."

I rushed forward and took the trembling dryad in my arms as Tirian exclaimed din anger, "What, Lady! Felling Lanter Wast? Murdering the talking trees? How dare they? And who dares it? Now by the name of Aslan!"

Before he could say anymore, the dryad began to scream in my arms, a wince crossing her face at intervals every new seconds. Then she fell sideways as if her legs had been cut from under her. I managed to still grab hold of her, but after a few moments she disappeared. Anger caused me to shake as I looked where her body had lain. She had been felled, miles away.

"Come friends," Tirian decided, grief and anger clear in his voice. "We must go up river and find the villains who have done this, with all the speed we may. I will leave not one of them alive." As the others began discussing plans, I felt such a grief wash over me. Crumbling to my knees, I allowed tears to fall in mourning of the dryad and other like her who had been murdered.

I faintly heard the heavy galloping of Roonwit as a pair of arms wrapped around my shoulders. I placed my hands on top of his arms and struggled to my feet. No one spoke, we merely walked on, anger the primary emotion in all of us. We came across a river that we had to ford, but Tirian walked alongside Jewel with the unicorn talking most of the current and Azar and myself flying overhead.

When a water rat passed us on a raft, I could hardly pay attention to the conversation, but I caught that Tirian had asked who gave orders for the trees to be felled. "The Lion's orders, Sire. Aslan himself," the rat replied. Azar landed on my shoulder and the four of us looked upon one another in fear.

"Aslan," Tirian whispered, his hands shaking. "Could he be felling the wholly trees, murdering the dryads."

"Unless they've done something wrong," Jewel replied.

"But selling them to the Calormens?" Tirian countered. They decided to go on, but I felt I was going to be sick. Falling behind the unicorn, Tirian asked, "Are you alright, my love?" I merely shook my head. He had learned when I wanted to talk and when i did not, so he simply interlaced our fingers and we walked on.

The hateful hack-hack of axes on timber reached our ears as we went on and soon we were faced by a long, wide road through Lantern Waste. I paled as I saw the road. At least seventy trees had to have been cut down to get so wide and long of a road. Several men were in the crowd, but they were not the white Narnians we were used to seeing.

They were all Calormens. While we were at peace and seeing a few Calormen merchants or an ambassador or two was not an oddity, at least fifty were before us. As we walked into the road, we came across two men who were driving a horse. They whipped it savagely, but, as much as it pained me to see a horse whipped, I assumed it was a Calormen horse and started to walk on.

Suddenly, the horse screamed, "Fool and Tyrant! Can't you see that I am doing all I can?" I saw red and the next thing I knew the two Calormens lay dead on the ground. One had burnmarks on it's face and a gored hole from Jewel's horn. The other had my throwing knife in his chest and head departed from it's shoulders.